Friday, May 26, 2017

OFF THE WIRE
CALIFORNIA — Checkpoints are becoming part of the scenery in many
parts of the country. Excuses for blocking roads range from catching
drunks, to finding drugs, to catching illegal immigrants, to just simply
making people show their papers in order to continue down the road. In
California, they employ daily checkpoints to catch polluters.
“It’s ridiculous,” said Dane Chea,
owner of Holt Automotive Repair in Rocklin, after witnessing a nearby
smog checkpoint. “It’s taking time away from people. Everybody’s busy.”

Smog testing equipment used at a checkpoint. (Source: ABC 23 Bakersfield)The smog tests, run by the California Bureau of Automotive Repair
(BAR), are technically voluntary, but with the fanfare and presence of
highway patrolmen flagging people down, it does not come off that way to
many drivers.
“They certainly don’t make it seem like it’s voluntary. There were no
warning markers. Nothing like that at all,” said Brentwood resident,
Mark Cutino. “It just seemed intimidating,” he told the San Jose Mercury News.
The California Highway Patrol’s own Erik Martinez admitted to the
same newspaper that he “spent a lot of time trying to calm drivers down”
at a recent checkpoint.
After witnessing a smog checkpoint in his neighborhood at 11:00 a.m. in the morning, Scott Tsuneishi of ImportTuner.com described what he saw as a “mandatory smog blockade.”
Two teams of BAR agents are deployed on a “near-daily basis.” If the
drivers comply with the checkpoint, bureaucrats insert a probe in their
tailpipe and the vehicles are analyzed for a number of failures.
According to Mercury News:

The tests, which take about 10 minutes, are set up
similar to smog checks at a service station. Technicians drive the
vehicle up onto an elevated metal dynamometer to check the car’s
components and systems, indicator lights, ignition timing, gas cap and
exhaust recirculation system, said Eric DeBarruel, a program
representative with the automotive bureau.

Initially set up as a “one-time inspection” in 1966 by the California
Highway Patrol, this program has continued to grow and expand. 1996
gave way to bi-annual inspections that were tied to the registration
process of the vehicle. This means that by accepting a California
driver’s license and registration, you are agreeing that you will comply
with this law or that you will be subject to legal consequences.
In 2002, the California Health and Safety Code added Section 44081,
which was meant to give the code and existing smog laws some “teeth.”
This specific section gives police officers in California the authority
to randomly stop vehicles to “ensure their compliance with state smog
laws.” The first portion of the section reads:

44081. (a) (1) The department, in cooperation with the
state board, shall institute procedures for auditing the emissions of
vehicles while actually being driven on the streets and highways of the
state. The department may undertake those procedures itself or seek a
qualified vendor of these services. The primary object of the procedures
shall be the detection of gross polluters. The procedures shall consist
of techniques and technologies determined to be effective for that
purpose by the department, including, but not limited to, remote
sensing. The procedures may include pullovers for roadside emissions testing and inspection.

Combined with the bi-annual inspections that are tied to vehicle
registration and Section 44081 and what do you end up with? Today’s
smog checkpoints.
But are these checkpoints really worth anything? California vehicles
already have to pass an emissions test to be registered in the state.
Why devote resources to a redundant smog check? Isn’t California
bankrupt?
Last month, the California Taxpayers Association compiled a startling
analysis of the state’s unfunded debts. As reported by the Sacramento Bee:

Cal-Tax researchers counted $443 billion in state and
local debts, roughly two-thirds of it carried by the state and the other
third by local agencies. That’s the equivalent of a fifth of the
state’s annual economic output and amounts to $11,600 for each of
California’s 38 million residents.

It is remarkable that a state with such startling levels of
outstanding debts can be spending money on frivolous things like this.
But this is California we are talking about. No project is too absurd
to spend taxpayers’ dollars on. In fact, if a driver fails emissions
testing in California, they pay him to stop driving his vehicle, from
$1,000 to $1,500, in what is referred to as a “vehicle retirement” package.
In light of the redundancy of the testing, and with the state budget
statistics in mind, one can only conclude that the California
legislature wants to spend money it doesn’t have, and wants the public to grow accustomed to being flagged down by police in broad daylight for customary checkpoints.

Reposting
this 2013 article because it was reported (now confirmed, but don't
have detail on it just yet) that the CHP were pulling over cars in San
Bruno yesterday supposably for the purposes of conducting a smog check.
These are not mandatory, they are voluntary, yet they tend to make it
sound like they are mandatory unless you specifically ask.
If you happen to see or get caught up in one of these smog checkpoints here in CA, please take pics or video and post them.These
are not mandatory, they are voluntary. A few years ago they were doing
this in Rocklin CA. I was on my bike. I stopped to see if they were
telling the people it is voluntary. They laughed at me. I went back to
the bike and grabbed my video camera.
The CHP Officer walked back to his car and stayed there. I told the
people waiting for their cars it was voluntary. They challenged those
doing the testing and they said yes, it is voluntary. Those folks left
and no one else wanted to participate in the "voluntary" smog check.
The tests are being conducted by the Bureau of Automotive Repair.Here
is the ding...this is just another way to generate revenue by
partnering with an industry that benefits from frightened citizens who
think they can be fined or forced to get rid of their car if they don't
meet the standard. On the flip side, CHP can't
issue citations for a failed test because it would expose the existing
system of required smog tests as flawed. And I'm sure these must be some
type of kickback from each smog station to the state just to
participate in the program. Again, it is all about the $$$$$$$

Roadside Inspection Program

The Roadside Inspection Program was established
by the Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR) pursuant to Health and Safety
Code section 44081 which requires BAR, with the
assistance of the California Highway Patrol, to inspect the emissions
of vehicles while actually being driven on
California roadways.Why are roadside surveys necessary?
The data collected from roadside surveys
provides an overview of the emissions emitted by vehicles driven on
California's roads to help ensure the State is
meeting federal standards for reducing ozone-forming pollution generated
by motor vehicles. The data also provides useful
information to evaluate and improve the performance of the
Smog Check Program.Where are roadside surveys performed?
The surveys are performed in the areas of the
state with the poorest air quality, including the Central Valley, the
San Francisco Bay area, the greater Los Angeles
area, Inland Empire, and San Diego area. BAR randomly selects ZIP codes
in these areas and then identifies suitable
sites where it can safely conduct the surveys.Who performs the roadside surveys?
Roadside surveys are performed by BAR staff.
Each team generally consists of three or four individuals, all of whom
are
ASE certified automotive technicians.How are the roadside surveys performed?
Vehicles selected for testing are stopped by an
officer of the California Highway Patrol. The consumer is greeted by a
BAR
representative who provides them with
information about the survey's purpose and answers any question they may
have. The
survey is performed in a manner similar to a
Smog Check inspection and usually takes less than 10 minutes.How do these surveys affect consumers?
Participation in the survey is voluntary. There
are no consequences to consumers, regardless of their vehicle's emission
control equipment or its emission levels. At the
conclusion of the inspection, the participants receive a Vehicle
Inspection
Report (VIR) detailing the results of the test.Does the survey take the place of a required Smog Check inspection?
No. The VIR may not be substituted for a
vehicle's official Smog Check inspection report. However, the VIR does
provide important
information about the vehicle. BAR staff will
also alert participants to any mechanical issues that are observed while
conducting
the inspection.

BAR appreciates your help in improving air
quality in California. To learn about more ways you can help to reduce
air pollution, visit
www.arb.ca.gov.